Change the world ...one cookie at a Time

THis Saturday my boys and I had our community service project that they picked to do this summer. When discussing this months ago, I told them I wanted to do a project that they choose where all the money made could go to help a charity of their choice. They both agreed that they wanted to sell ice tea and cookies both homemade. My eldest, Michael, wanted the money he made to go to help the animals caught up in the Gulf oil spill while my youngest, Jake , wanted to buy food for a homeless family.

Once we got the details sorted out after careful deliberation, we made the cookies and ice tea and made our way over to my mother in law's house to sell them . She has a lot more traffic than we do.

It was a hot one, in the nineties ( or at least it felt like it). The boys were troopers taking very few breaks and trudging through the heat for 3 hours. The boys were greeted with their first customer not even 10 minutes into setting up. Then came another and more to follow. both boys tried to come up with clever ways to capture drivers attention. They had made a colorful sigh which they held up at passing cars. While that was garnering attention it wasn't always bringing in the customers. Next, they tried holding a sign while the other held up a cookie waving it eagerly in the air. That helped a bit more, but the last ideas I think were the best.

Michael would hold a plate of cookies and screamed "Cookies for Charity!" while Jake held the sign. I lost track of the customers, but not of their generosity. The boys sold nearly all their cookies and ice tea and made $90 plus dollars for the charities! That was enough to help 3 families and 5 gulf animals. They were so proud and happy and are planning to do it again soon. My mother in law mentioned that seeing this redeemed her faith in humanity. I must admit it redeeemed mine too.

For more ways you can help these and other great charities check out this link.